


Mischief's Child

by summerlove_jls



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Loki's Kids, well just Hela
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-01
Updated: 2014-06-08
Packaged: 2018-02-03 01:42:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 21,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1726532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/summerlove_jls/pseuds/summerlove_jls
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Why has Loki's daughter Hela come to Stark Tower? Thor has to bring Loki back to Earth to find out. Is Loki going to be redeemed? Does he want to be? Hela is pretty powerful; is she going to help the Avengers with their next big problem? (about 1 year post-Avengers movie)</p>
<p>Other Avengers appear but aren't featured.</p>
<p>Cross posted from ff.net.</p>
<p>Not related to my "Mischief Adopted a Hawk?" story</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was mid-afternoon at Stark Tower. Tony and Bruce were working together in the lab. Part of the reconstruction of Stark Tower had involved changing the layout so the Avengers could work together comfortably when needed. Tony and Bruce had taken advantage of this opportunity for quite some time.

JARVIS interrupted their chatting abruptly. "Sir, it seems that a person has appeared in your living room." Tony's penthouse was one floor above the lab where the men were working. The other Avengers had living space on the lower floors. Jane Foster had even been provided a lab and living quarters for her, Darcy Lewis and Erik Selvig to use. The Bifrost had been rebuilt so Thor was able to return to earth regularly.

"JARVIS, What do you mean appeared?" Tony replied. He look quizzically at Bruce as they both stopped working.

"Sir, there have been no security breeches, no one has entered through any of the doors or windows. The person just seems to have appeared."

Tony began to pull up the video feed on his screen as Bruce wandered over. "What are they doing JARVIS?" "Sir, she seems to be sitting in the far corner of your living room by the window"

Tony and Bruce looked at the video feed and saw a person huddled in the corner as JARVIS indicated. Her knees where pulled to her chest, with arms wrapped around, her face was buried between her chest and legs.

Tony pulled up the recorded video feed from the previous few minutes. One moment the area was empty and the next the figure appeared sitting on the floor away from the wall. She had then scooted across the floor to the corner, where she now sat.

"Jarvis, is she armed?"

"No, Sir."

Tony and Bruce decided to investigate and find out who this person was and how they got into to his secured building. Tony put on one of the arm pieces to of his suits as a precaution and they entered the elevator. When the elevator opened on Tony's floor they carefully walked into the open floor planned living space. They slowly approached the person in the corner. She sat huddled in the corner without movement. She was wearing a dark green t-shirt and black pants and black boots. She was thin, her skin, that they could see, was pale. Her black hair appeared to go just past her shoulders. It looked damp and sloppily hung around her head. As they got closer they could see large purple and black bruising on her arms. Her hands were bloodstained. Her wrists had deep purple indentations that seem to be from being bound. They looked at each other with stunned acknowledgement of what they were seeing. They stopped when they were about 6 feet away from her.

Tony started in an even toned voiced. "Uh, hey…excuse me…how did you get in here? Do you need some help?"

The woman…girl…young woman… they couldn't tell how old she was, peered up so only her eyes were visible overtop her knees. They were a piercing green color. Tony and Bruce froze for a moment and then looked at each other. They had seen those eyes before. Just then, the girl took one of her hands and hid it in the crevice between her legs and chest. She then pulled out a small piece of folded paper and reached her arm out to the men.

Tony looked at Bruce, "I don't like to be handed things."

Bruce crept over and took the paper from her battered and bloodstained hand. He went back to where Tony was standing and they both looked down at the paper as Bruce unfolded it. Written on the paper in easy to read printing was:

I am the child of Prince Loki, the traitor.

The crown-price of Asgard, Thor, is my uncle.

I wish to speak with Thor.

Tony spoke up, "Thor isn't here."

She reached back in the space and produced another note and held it out to the men.

Heimdall will be able to alert Thor.

You can call out to him and tell him what I require

Just call out his name.

The men looked at each other quizzically. Tony thought and shrugged at Bruce. "We got to give it a try, just to see what happens." He did as the second note instructed. "Hey, Heimdall. Uh, we have a girl here who has given us a note that says that she is the child of Loki and she needs to talk to Thor." Tony looked at the girl, "Okay, now what?" The girl produced another note from the hidden space. It read, "We wait."

* * *

15 minutes had passed and Tony and Bruce sat in chairs that they has pulled out to the area that they had stood at before. The girl had tucked her face back into the space between her knees and chest after she had handed them the last note. Just then clouds started to stir and the rumble of thunder was heard. There was a knock on the glass of Tony's sliding glass door leading to the patio. Tony rushed over and open the door.

"Where is she?" Thor asked in a hurried manner as he rushed inside.

"Over here," Tony said as he led the way over to the corner of the living room.

"Heimdall told me what he saw transpire between you and her"

Thor walked over to her but stopped short when he saw her and her state. Thor sat Mjolnir down and knelt down on the floor about 5 feet away from her. In a soft voice he called to her. "Hela?" The girl looked up from her hiding spot again so only her eyes were showing and looked at Thor. Thor inched closer to her, almost crawling, so that he was right in front of her. She was visibly trembling. "Hela, what happened?" She just looked at Thor with only her eyes. "Who did this to you?" No answer. "What are you doing on Midgard?" No answer but this time Hela's shook her head slightly back and forth.

"Can you answer yes or no questions?" Bruce spoke up. Hela's eyes drifted over to him. She nodded.

Thor began speaking again. "Did you come to Midgard on your own?" Hela nodded her head. "Did someone on Midgard hurt you?" Hela shook her head. "Do you know who it is that hurt you?" Hela hid her face as her breath hitched and she nodded her head. She peered back up from her knees. Thor looked down and around and thought for a moment in silence. He started to say something but stopped and thought again. "Do you wish me to bring your father here?" Hela calmed her breathing and nodded her head. Tony was just about to protest but Thor rose and ushered Tony and Bruce to a different part of the room.

"Hey, Point Break, You can't bring your psychopath brother back here. It's not going to happen." Tony piped up.

"I need to bring my brother here to find out what has happened."

"Seriously, just scoop her up with you, swing your hammer around and take her to Asgard and let her sort this out with daddy dearest there."

"I cannot do that"

"Why not"

"Because Hela…. is not really allowed in Asgard"

"What. Why not? Wait, isn't she family, though?"

"Yes. It's complicated. But know that if I could bring her to Asgard I would. I'm not even sure if my father will allow Loki to return here, but I must go and implore the Allfather to allow this"

"We've got to talk about this with the others."

* * *

After a few minutes Steve was in the room. Hawkeye and Natasha were out on a mission.

"So tell us then, why can't you bring Hela back to Asgard. Why do you have to bring Loki here?"

"Hela is Loki's only daughter. When she came of age, she was sent to rule the Realm of Hel. She is the Goddess of the Dead. She resides in that realm. She can travel freely, however, she cannot enter Asgard. She isn't exactly banished nor exiled…but..it…it's hard to explain. She may only enter Asgard once the Allfather has decreed that she can return. My father does everything with a purpose, sometimes we do not readily see what that purpose is"

"Your family dysfunction has set the bar at a whole new level. This would make a great reality show. You wouldn't even need producers creating situations, you guys do a bang-up job on your own." Tony chimed in. Bruce just shook his head. Thor look thoroughly confused.

"I must return to Asgard and request that my brother be released into my custody so that he can try to figure out what has happened."

"So she isn't normally this quiet?" Bruce asked

"No, quite the contrary. Something terrible has happened and Loki may be the only one who can get her tell us what."

"How do we know that your brother won't try to take over the world again? How do we know that this isn't a plan between the two of them?" Steve questioned

"I don't think that Hela and Loki have had contact in the last few years." Thor said still in thought. "Hela is very powerful. She has a biting tongue as Loki does. She doesn't possess the same madness and hate that Loki had, despite her removal from Asgard and appointment elsewhere. If my father allows Loki to return, he could bind his magic. He cannot strip him of the magic, as that is part of his being. But he could restrict it and not allow full use of his magic."

"Wait, you said,  _had_." Tony said.

"What?"

You said she doesn't have the same madness that Loki  _had_."

"Yes, my brother has been punished and has begun to realize the damage, pain and suffering that he has caused. He is trying to atone for his wrongdoing."

Steve looked at Tony and Bruce. "What do you think?"

"Do we have a choice?" Bruce answered.

"Fury is going to be pissed."

Steve leaves to go to SHEILD headquarters to tell Fury about the situation

* * *

"Sir, I think the only way we are going to be able to figure out what is going on and how this girl got here is to let Loki come and talk to her." Steve explained to Fury.

"You want be to allow a war criminal back on our planet?"

"Thor said that his magic could be restricted and he wouldn't be as powerful as before. With the team assembled, we will have close watch on him at all times."

"I don't like this. But I also don't like gods from other places randomly showing up in people's living rooms. Tell Thor he can bring his brother back her for the only purpose of tending to his daughter."

"Yes, sir"

* * *

Steve called Tony to tell his what Fury's decision was. "Fury, said he could come, but he may only be here to tend to his daughter and then he has to return with Tho."

"Very well. Thank you my friends. Please, watch over her until I return." Thor walked outside to the patio and left.

Tony and Bruce turned to look over at Hela, who's eyes had followed Thor out the door. Her gazed turned back to the two men, she closed her eyes and put her face back into her secure hiding spot.

Bruce walked to Tony's kitchen and got a glass of water. He walked over to Hela and sat the glass down close to her feet. "Here's some water."

She peered up at him and then down at the glass of water. She looked back up at him and bowed her head in an effort to acknowledge and accept his offering. He backed away watching her and noticed that she did not pick up the glass. He went back to listen in on the discussion.

"I can't believe Loki has one child. Does he have anymore?" Bruce wondered

"I don't know. Don't know if you can believe everything in the mythology either. I heard Jane and Eric talking about things that Thor indicated were not correct in some of the myths."

Pepper had come home during their discussion and they brought her up on what was going on.

Bruce kept watching Hela as they discussed things. He saw her pull the glass closer to her and dip two fingers into the glass. She pulled her hand into the hiding place for her face. She did that again two more times, before pushing the glass slightly away from her body.

A half an hour had passed since Thor had left. On the opposite side of the room, Thor and Loki materialized after Loki had teleported them into the Penthouse.

"Where is she?" Loki stormed over to Tony.

"Over in the corner."

"How did she get here?"

"I don't know. Jarvis just said that someone appeared in the living room. We looked at the video, she literally just appeared. We came up here to check it out and we found her just like she is. She handed us this note and the others when we communicated." Tony said.

Loki looked at her notes.

Bruce jumped in. "I think something is wrong with her mouth." All turn to look at Bruce. "I gave her a glass of water. She didn't drink it. She just dipped her fingers in it and put them into the place where she is hiding her face.

Loki look at Bruce for a moment and then walked over to the corner that Hela had been sitting in since she arrived in Tony's penthouse. He knelt down and touched her hand. "Hela"

The girl peered her green eyes out from their hiding place to meet her father's matching green eyes. Hela let a long breath out of her nose slowly.

Loki wrapped his slender fingers around Hela's bloodstained hand and sat all the way down on the floor almost beside her. "Hela, look at me."

Hela shook her head.

"Hela, look at me." Hela shook her and buried her face in her hiding spot.

Loki raised his voice slightly. "Hela, let me see your face." He took both of her hands and pulled them away from her knees. She stretch her legs out, still looking down. She slowly look up at her father as his expression sank.

She stared into his eyes.

Hela's lips had been sewn shut.


	2. Chapter 2

Shocked covered the faces of the people that were gathered in Tony's penthouse. No words were said. Thor's shock slowly turned to anger, but he voiced no comment.

Loki remained composed. "Is your magic depleted?" Hela nodded her head emphatically. "Do you have any left?" Hela shook her head and held her index finger and thumb about a centimeter apart to indicate she had very little magic remaining. "Can you stand?" Hela nodded her head. Loki helped her up to a standing position. She stood about 5' 8''; she was tall but still 6 inches shorter than her father. She was muscular but still slender. She looked like she was in her early 20s, even though that was probably not an accurate estimate of her age. Her skin was pale in the places that were not bruised and she had strong checkbones.

As they stood beside each other, with the same piercing green eyes; there was no doubt they were father and daughter. Loki slid his arm around her wait to help her walk but as she advanced a couple of steps he could see how weak she was. He reached down and scooped her up and carried her to one of Tony's sofas and placed her onto the seat. He sat on the coffee table and examined the stitching in her mouth.

The others gathering around.

"Can you remove the cord, brother?" Thor inquired.

"It is enchanted. I cannot dissolve it with my magic restricted, but I can weaken its hold enough that I can unwind the stitches." He looked at Hela. "I won't be able to do anything about the pain. I can stop the bleeding, but I won't be able to heal the wounds. That is something you will have to do when you regain your magic or I can do if I have full use of mine." Hela nodding her head indicating she understood.

"I will require some items." Loki stood up made his way to the kitchen while the others followed. Hela waited on the sofa.

"I will need a bucket or waste receptacle…2 glasses of water….and a towel. Her magic is depleted to a dangerous level and she is in a near mortal state. She will need sustenance…food to help her regain her strength and magic then she can heal herself more quickly."

"Food, I have tons of food, I can make her anything that we have. We can order out….does she like Chinese…Ooooo we could order schawarma, I could go for some schawarma." Tony rambled on quickly trying to help.

Bruce looked at Loki, "We can give her an IV and send nutrients directly into her blood stream through a needle. That will help speed it up."

Pepper offered "I'll go get things together so she can bathe and get a bed ready so she can rest." Loki offered a small smile and bowed his head to thank her. Pepper went back to the other rooms of the penthouse.

Loki turned to Thor. "I need you to hold her and keep her arms still." Thor nodded, "Yes, of course."

They gathered the items Loki requested and proceeded back to the living room.

Thor sat on the sofa.

Loki spoke as he sat on the coffee table across from Thor, "Thor is going to hold you and your arms still while we do this. I know it's going to be painful. I'll do it as quickly as I can." Hela nodded and climbed in Thor's lap, he smiled warmly at her. He wrapped his large arms around her pinning her arms to her side at the elbows.

"Are you ready?" Hela nodded. She stared at a spot on the far wall and readied herself.

Loki used an initial burst of magic to weaken the cord. Then without actually touching the cord, he used his magic to pull on the stitches. He pull the first little bit through the first hole below her bottom lip. A small drop of blood started to ease out of the hole. Hela's breathing sped up a bit. Loki continued pulling the stitching out through the holes in which they were woven. He had gotten a quarter of the way across her mouth as her breathing started at a faster pace. She was trembling and pushing out against Thor's arms. Her fists were clenched and her head started to shake.

"Hold still, Hela." Loki continued to pull the stitches through. Hela continued shaking and tears began stream down her face. "Hold still, my love"

Bruce came behind the sofa and slowly reached over the left side of Thor. As gently as he could, he placed his hands on either side of her head, just below her ears. He used his thumbs to steady the back of her head and placed his fingers across her check and jaw line. Hela relaxed her head into Bruce's hands as he held her steady.

Loki was halfway through the stitching that sealed her mouth closed. Hela hands were still gripped into fists, tears still streamed down her face, her body trembling against the hands that were holding her still. No one said a word. Loki started softly humming, barely audible as he watched her mouth. Hela's eyes turned and focused on Loki's face and she watched him as he worked at the cord binding her mouth closed, softly humming. Thor, who had been looking at the floor during this painstakingly slow operation, heard the humming and began to slowly recognize the melody that was flowing from Loki. He looked up slowly at his brother. Loki made no eye contact with Thor as he was still immersed in his difficult task. Thor returned his gaze to the floor, a small smile peeking through. His brother, the god of mischief, who had fallen into madness and darkness, who tried to conquer a realm with the help of evil forces …this brother, was softly humming a lullaby to his child; a lullaby that their mother had sung to them both when they were small.

Loki finished pulling the last stitch through Hela's mouth. He sent a pulse of magic through the sensitive area and the bleeding from the holes around her lips slowed and then ceased. 8 tiny wounds lined across the top and the bottom of her lips where the cord once was. Thor released his hold from around his arms and Bruce let his hands pull away from the back of her neck. Hela parted her lips, took a deep breath in and exhaled through her mouth.

Just then she felt the wretch surge forward from her stomach and stop. Loki reached from the floor and brought the bucket up that Tony had given them. The surge came again and Hela let loose and threw up into the bucket, sliding from Thor's lap as she purged. Lifting her head she took one of the glasses of water and downed it quickly. A second later she was wretching into the bucket again. This time when she was done, Loki handed her a towel and she wiped her mouth. He handed her the second glass of water. "Just small sips this time."

She nodded and took a small sip. She looked at him and then got a quizzical look on her face. He return the gaze with the same look. "What is it?" he asked.

Hela stared at him for another moment and took another sip a water.

"How in the Nine Realms did you get out of prison?"

Loki chuckled to himself. "That dear, is a question for your uncle."

Thor laughed at that response. He turned to her. "Lady Hela what has happened? Who has done this to you? Why are you not in Hel?"

"Slow down uncle. My mouth has been sewn shut for almost a month and I feel like I have been through battle."

Bruce spoke up. "We can give you some pain medication. I don't know if it will work on you, but we could try."

Hela smiled slightly at Bruce. "Yes. I'll think we could try that."

She turned back to Loki and Thor. "I have been held captive for two months."

"By whom?" Thor inquired

"Thanos"

Loki and Thor's eyes grew wide. Thor looked to his brother, but Loki did not turn to share glances.

Thor looked back to Hela. "What need would Thanos have with you?"

She looked to Thor. "Thanos seeks to exact revenge for a failed plan. He decided to hold me captive in an attempt to draw out the traitor." Her eyes turned to Loki as she said traitor but then returned her focus back to Thor. "Thanos thought the planned attempt to take over Midgard would have succeeded had it not been for sabotage….thus the traitor needs to be punished."

Thor looked confused. Hela shot Loki a knowing look. He looked at her with an expressionless face not acknowledging what Hela was trying to imply.

She continued talking. "So when my magic became thoroughly depleted, I developed a plan to escape and then I carried out that plan."

"So how did you end up here?" Loki moving the conversation away from the topic of Thanos.

"I couldn't go back to Hel in the condition I was in; I didn't have enough power. I couldn't go to Asgard, obviously. I knew Midgard was under Thor's protection and he would be quick to come here if there was a disturbance. I've been here many times and I knew this structure was where I could find your friends, Uncle. When I was taken, I had hidden away in the fabric of shadows and space my bracelet that Grandmother had given me when I was sent out of Asgard. One of the charms on it was an orb with a drop of power from the Jutun Casket. When I was ready to escape, I had just enough power to retrieve my bracelet. I used the power from the tiny orb to teleport here and conjure Midgardian clothing. Once I was here I conjured the notes to communicate with your friends."

Loki broke in. "What are your injuries?"

"I only stopped healing 2 weeks ago. That's when I knew I had to get away. I think I have several broken ribs. You can see the bruises and then well…my mouth. Once my magic is replenished I'll be able to heal again."

Pepper came into the living room and indicated that she had readied the things she had said she would.

Thor stood. "Why don't you go with Lady Pepper and you can bathe and then we can tend to what injuries we can."

Hela tried to stand, but could not without assistance. Loki helped her up and helped her walk as Pepper led to them to a guest bathroom where a large whirlpool tub was filled with warm water.

Pepper looked at Loki. "I can help her from here. It's okay."

Loki sat Hela down on a cushioned stool in the bathroom. "Yes, thank you," bowing his head in gratitude.

Hela nodded to indicate she was okay and he turned and left.

Pepper helped Hela get her clothes off and step into the tub. "Here are some clothes that you can wear and I will wash these for you. If you need anything JARVIS can tell me." Hela look at her questioningly. "Oh….JARVIS is a computerized system…not a person. Just say something and JARVIS will answer. Isn't that right JARVIS?"

"Yes, Miss Potts."

"Oh, I see." Hela smiled and nodded.

Pepper left the large bathroom and Hela sank down almost totally submerged in the water.

Pepper reentered the living room area. Tony was talking to Thor. "Who is this Thanos?"

"He is known as the mad titan. Many ages ago he launched a war against the realms. He was defeated after several realms united against him. He was cast into the void and he has not been heard from since."

"So am I wrong assuming you're the traitor?" Tony looked at Loki with his palm on his chin and tapping his finger on his lips with a feigned questioning look on his face.

"The term traitor implies allegiance." Loki responded

"So then why is he pissed at you?" Tony looked at Loki.

"I failed to deliver the Tesserat to him." was all the reply that Loki gave.

Thor looked at Loki in shock. "Brother! It was Thanos who gave you the scepter and command of the Chitauri."

"Wait a second," Bruce inquired. "This Thanos gave you command of the Chitauri to conquer Earth in exchange for you giving him the Cube?"

"It appears you a have a firm grasp of the nature of the dealing." Loki spoke evenly.

"But that didn't quite work out the way you two had planned. So now your silent partner, doesn't seem so silent anymore" Tony added. "Well he sure did a number on your girl there. I'm still not quite following the whole sew someone's mouth shut kind of thing."

Thor added in a quiet tone. "In the other realms, it is not uncommon to punish liars in this symbolic manner."

"So has 'liar-liar-pants-on-fire' over here had his mouth sewn shut before?" Tony gesturing towards Loki. Loki made no response. "You have! That's how you knew she was going to puke. Man, mark that down for another episode of the reality show. Now we just need a great title."

Bruce jumped in to change the subject. "She said it was stitched shut for a month; how is she still alive?"

"Hela is a little different from us. She does not have to take in sustenance as often as we do. She possess some other…traits, as well." Loki answered.

Tony interjected. "You know…come to think of it…how is it that you…psychotic, delusional, maniacal  _you_ …has a daughter who seems pretty okay…you know except for the whole mouth being sewn shut, being beat to hell and all. She must be like her mother."

Thor choked back a laugh in part because of his knowledge of Hela's mother.

Loki replied, "I assure you she is nothing like her mother. Hela's personality will return when she has her strength."

"Wait…..what's the deal with her mother?"

"She is not alive. Anything else is no concern of yours."

"Do you have any other children?"

"No….despite what the Midgardian myths say, I do not.

* * *

Hela had soaked for an hour in the warm water, trying to wash away the remnants of her ordeal with Thanos. Thor must have done some pretty convincing pleading in order for the Allfather to let her father out of his prison cell. She was glad that he was able to remove the stitching from her mouth. She had continuously battered Thanos with words while he had her. Finally, he decided to stitch her mouth closed in an effort to silence her. She remembered how he told her he planned to do the same thing to Loki in the future as part of his revenge for failing to deliver the Tesserat to him as planned.

She pulled herself out of the large tub and dried herself. She found the clothes that Pepper had acquired for her. There were substitute undergarments in the form of a two-piece Midgardian bathing suit. She put the pieces on and then saw her reflection in the mirror in the bathroom. She looked like someone who had just arrived in her realm, weary from dancing so close to Death and then finally being taken into her sweet embrace. But she was still here, in Midgard of all places with her Uncle and Father. She pulled on soft cotton flannel pajama pants and a black tee-shirt that had the most interesting design on it. There was a large cross on the shirt and along the cross were 5 skulls. But these skulls were decorated. One had long blond hair and a red band around its head. Another had long curly black hair with a black hat. Two others had black hair as well and another with blond hair. She didn't understand the meaning behind the wording; across the top of the cross on a banner were the words "Guns N Roses" along the bottom of the cross another banner that read "Appetite for Destruction. Hela looked closely at the pictures again and smiled, she quite liked this shirt.

She slowly walked out of the bathroom through the hallway back to the open room where the others were waiting for her to return.


	3. Chapter 3

Steve had return from S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters and was brought up to speed on what was going on up to that point.

Hela return from the hallway from the guest bathroom and approached the group.

"Here, you need to eat something." Thor was motioning for her to sit at Tony's dining room table. She started with a bowl of soup. "Start slowly, niece." Thor patted her shoulder. Hela began eating. "You should be regaining your strength in no time."

Bruce came over to the table and began organizing items. He had an IV pole with a bag attached, several vials of medicine and various needles. "I can give you some pain medicine now but first I'll put this IV in your arm and we'll send some hydration and nutrients through it into your bloodstream." Hela nodded her head, not really paying that close attention to the meaning behind his words. When she realized Bruce had a needle in his hand as he reached for her arm, she jerked it away and shifted her body away from him at the same time while grabbing his wrist with her other hand. Bruce looked up at her; her eyes were wide and almost looked fiery.

"Hela, Dr. Banner means you no harm." Thor moved in closer.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Bruce said softly.

Hela let out a breath she was holding and let go of Bruce's wrist, settling back into the chair. "Sorry. Just a little uneasy around needles, lately. I'm okay."

Bruce explained to Hela the way the IV worked and she let him insert it into hand. She had another bowl of soup and then Bruce sent some morphine through the IV. Because of her weakened state, within a few minutes Hela started to feel the effects of the medicine and started to drift asleep. Loki moved her to the guest room that Pepper had readied for her. He had told the others that he would sit in the room to keep watch during the night.

Once Loki was out of the room, Steve asked Thor, "What's Loki's deal?"

"I don't understand your question."

Steve explained. "Why is Loki acting the way that he is? This is pretty strange behavior for someone who a year ago was trying to destroy the city and us."

"Like I said, Loki recognizes the impact of his madness and vengeance. I think more importantly this is his child that we are dealing with and it seems she has suffered because of his transgressions." Thor replied thoughtfully.

"Do you think he has changed?" Steve inquired.

"Loki has not really had the opportunity to demonstrate his change of viewpoint in actions yet."

"You said that Loki and Hela hadn't spoken in years. Did something happen?" Bruce asked.

Thor thought for a moment. "When our father announced a date for my coronation, Loki began to seem despondent at times. The coronation was a year away and we didn't notice it at first, but his jealously was beginning to build. He had created a scheme to disrupt the coronation. I didn't realize until much later that he had isolated himself from everyone including Hela. When he fell from the Bifrost I thought I had lost him. I had assumed that Death had claimed him that he was in the Underworld. I don't know if he had contact with her before he invaded your world, but he has been imprisoned in Asgard for the past year and I know he hasn't spoken to her in that time."

The groups went to their respective living quarters for the night; Thor of course, going down to Jane's apartment.

* * *

Sunlight poured through the window in the room where Hela had been sleeping. As she awoke she saw her father, the fallen prince of Asgard, sitting in a cushioned chair sleeping. She got out of bed; she was feeling much stronger than she had felt last night. She was still connected to the IV which looked like it had a new bag of solution hanging on the pole. She grabbed the pole as she walked over and kissed her father lightly on top of his head and then proceeded over to the large mirror on the wall. The tiny holes around her mouth were scabbed over. She could feel a stronger pulse of magic in her body and she reached hand up to her mouth and send a wave of magic through the area. Slowly the holes faded and disappeared leaving no traces of Thanos's attempt to silence her constant verbal prodding while he held her captive. She thought it best to wait a bit before healing her ribs, she didn't want to do too much too fast. She walked about to the main room with the IV pole rolling beside her.

Tony and Pepper were in the kitchen making breakfast.

"Good morning, sunshine." Tony called out. Hela looking around the room to see who he was talking to. "Are you talking to me?"

"Uh, you're the only one out there, so I think I am." Tony replied.

"Oh. Good morning. Thank you for your hospitality. I apologize for just appearing in your home. I should rather make my acquaintance with others in a different manner."

"Hey, you were in bad shape and I get it. I've been there. Here, have some French toast." Tony sat a plate of food down at the table and Hela made her way over. "Hey, your mouth….It's fixed."

Hela smiled. "Yes. I regained enough strength to heal it this morning." She sat down and began to sample the food that Tony and Pepper had prepared.

Steve, Bruce and Thor had made their way up to Tony's penthouse.

Thor approached the dining room. "Lady Hela, how are you this morning? You are looking well."

"Thank you. I feel well." Hela smiled at him. Loki made his way out of the guest room and sat on one of the chairs at the table. Hela and Loki smiled at each other offering no other greeting. Small side conversations were occurring not really focused on pressing matters. After about 10 minutes of this Hela turned to Thor. "So uncle, how is everyone in Asgard? Has the Allfather banished or exiled any family members lately? Anyone else been tossed into the abyss?" Hela said with a smile on her face.

Thor looked surprised, "Watch your words, child." The others stopped their side conversations and started listening to this exchange.

" _Child?..._ Now uncle, you and I both know that it doesn't matter if I am a child, now does it? It didn't matter to the Allfather that I was just an adolescent when he sent me away to Hel, alone? Now did it?" Nonchalance was dripping from Hela mouth.

Hela took another bite of the French toast and turned to Loki. "What about you Father? What are your plans? Maybe you should go back your prison cell in Asgard. It might be best. You know, we can't have you getting captured and tortured again, then who knows which world you'll try to conquer next." Hela continued nonchalant in her tone, smirking as she talked.

"Hela, what nonsense are you speaking?" Thor was starting to get angered.

"Yes, nonsense indeed," Loki said with his mouth drawn tight.

"What do you mean,  _nonsense_? Obviously, it was a biting comment. But..I mean..it was pretty straightforward."

"Hela, you are making no sense." Thor was looking hard.

"Wh- ?" Hela turned to Loki, a realization setting in. "You didn't tell him…..You didn't tell  _them?_ " Astonishment and confusion in her voice, she was shaking her head.

"Don't speak about what you don't know." Loki chided

"Didn't tell me what?" Thor rose from his seat.

"There is nothing to tell, Thor." Loki responded but glaring at Hela.

"The truth should be told." Hela asserted.

"The truth told from the silver-tongue is always seen as a lie."

"I know the truth."

"You know nothing."

"I was with her when you called out to her"

"What?"

"I was with her when you called for her to come to you"

Loki looked in disbelief.

"She was in Hel. You cried out for her. I was going to go with her to claim you"

"Who, Hela…who are you talking about?" Thor jumped in.

Hela never took her eyes of Loki. "Death." There was silence. "We went together to take you. We were there. We were so close. We saw you and what Thanos had done to you. He snagged you as you were falling into the abyss. And there you were, lying broken, beaten, tortured in body and mind and begging for Death after you truly realized that no one was coming for you. And then he took that despair, and he twisted it and molded it into rage and vengeance towards everyone else and then offered you a way out of that place and you took it. We were so close. I could almost touch you. She almost took you into her embrace. You would have been mine."

"Brother? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Don't. I don't need your pity. I made my decisions."

"Wait, it sounds like you are saying that Death is a person." Steve inserted himself into the conversation.

"Well, she's not exactly a 'person' more like an entity. She's my friend. Which makes sense; Death and the Goddess of the Dead go together." Hela looked at Thor. "You know it's a special kind of despair when you realize that no one will come and save you. Luckily, when Thanos captured me, I knew right from the start that I was on my own and no one was coming to save me." Hela stopped and stared at no particular thing. "I was used to it. It wasn't a new realization. I knew I was on my own. I had come to terms with that understanding long ago…when the Allfather sent me to rule Hel." She looked around at Thor and Loki. "Maybe  _that's_  why he sent me away, so I could learn that."

There was a few moments of silence after Hela's realization. Loki shrugged. "Or maybe he sent you away because it was foretold that you would lead an army against Odin by invading Asgard."

Hela pretended to be perturbed. "You're one to talk about things being foretold about them. At least I'm not supposed to bring about Ragnarok."

Loki smirked. "This is true, but you are going to essentially help speed it along." They both looked at each other and busted into chuckles.

Tony broke into this exchange. "Are you two joking around about ending your world? Should we be worried?"

Hela stopped chuckling and answered. "The prophesies given in our world are essentially like fortunes being told on Midgard. They are not really taken seriously except to those who are incredibly superstitious. My father and I have rather bleak prophesies surrounding us. I am to lead an army against Asgard and kill the Allfather. And my father is bring about Ragnarok; the end of our world."

"Yes, but this is not  _why_  you were sent out of Asgard, Hela." Thor said assuredly.

"No, of course not. When the Allfather saw how powerful I was becoming and what I had inside me….what I looked like when I used some of my power….that's when he knew my place wasn't in Asgard anymore. I have something inside me that I had to to learn to control. When that side of me is shown, it frightens a great many people. It is hard to gain acceptance when most of those around you are fearful of you and the 'monster' inside. I'm really powerful and it scares people what I can do. It didn't have anything to do with a silly prophesy. Hey..wait?" Hela looked to Loki. "Don't you need to have some more children? Aren't we are all supposed to align together to bring forth the end of the world." Hela had a huge grin on her face. Loki didn't look amused at the last comment and just shook his head.

"See, I told you this was a plan between the two of them. I knew they couldn't be trusted." Steve had an 'I told you so' look on his face.

"Relax, Capscicle, I think she's kidding." Tony said followed with an eye roll. "Wait! I've got it! My dad tried to take over the Earth and enslave all of humanity." Everyone looked at Tony with strange looks. "It's the name for the reality show." Everyone shook their heads and went back to their breakfast and their side conversations.

Bruce removed the IV from Hela's hand and she sent a pulse of magic through the spot and the puncture wound disappeared. She stood and went back to the guest room. She changed out of the borrowed clothing and put on the clothes she had conjured when she first arrived in Midgard. Her magic was coming back more and more strongly now. She sent pulses through her body and her broken ribs mended back together and the bruising on her arms and legs faded away. She looked at herself in the mirror and gave her reflection a smirk, admiring her work.

She walked back out into the main room with quickness in her steps. As she entered the room she made her way over to Loki, talking as she walked. "Uncle, I have to talk to my father."

She grabbed both of Loki's shoulders and looked at Thor. "I promise I will bring him back." Before Thor could respond, they disappeared.


	4. Chapter 4

"What just happened?" Bruce said in stunned shock.

"She just poofed him away….she just poofed him away." Tony said not believing the words that he was saying.

"She said she would return." Thor said quietly.

Steve had his mouth agape. Finally he got out the words. "I told you this could happened."

There was a few minutes of silence and then JARVIS broke in. "Sir, it seems that Hela and Loki are on the roof."

"The roof? What are they doing?" Tony said.

"It appears that they are sitting down and talking to each other."

* * *

"Aligning with Thanos, father?"

"I saw an opportunity for my escape and I seized it. Just as you did."

"I didn't take you for someone to subjugate a population and hand over the Tesseract to someone like Thanos." Hela stopped talking and glared into space. An exasperated smile spread across her face before beginning again. "You weren't going to give him the Tesseract, were you? You were going to keep it for yourself." Her expression going to a smirk as she looked over to her father, shaking her head. Loki gave her a grin.

"So what happened?"

"These humans were formidable and able to reconcile themselves more quickly than anticipated. It appeared that victory was not possible."

"So, you let yourself be captured. You could have teleported away, but you didn't."

Loki just shrugged and smirked.

Hela thought for a moment. "You knew you would be taken to Asgard and that the Allfather would imprison you. You would be in a cell that would be protected against magic… from the inside and the outside. Thanos wouldn't be able to come near you."

A wide smile crossed Loki's face.

"Always a scheme, always a plan." Hela looked away smiling, shaking her head almost in disbelief.

"Have I taught you any less, daughter? You seemed to have developed a well thought out plan to get here."

"What about now? You are here, out of the cell and your magic is bound on top of that."

"A risk I was willing to take to for you, magic restricted or not."

Hela nodded her head in acknowledgement glancing at Loki from the corner of her eyes.

"Can you break the binding spell?" Loki asked not looking at her.

She smiled and looked at him. "Only temporarily; the binding would come back and I wouldn't be able to break it again."

He nodded his head and smiled at her.

"Thor seems to think that you have begun to see the error of your ways and want to atone for the wrong that you have done."

"Your uncle will hold onto the last drop of hope that exists wanting me to be redeemed. Your uncle profusely apologizes for the way he was towards me before his time of exile and hopes that we can be brothers again."

"Do you not want to?"

"My child, for probably the first time, I'm not sure what I want."

"Do you hate him?"

"I don't think I hate him anymore."

"I won't ask about the Allfather." Hela smirked. "I know you love grandmother."

"My mother is the paramount example of giving unconditional love. She is a bright light that beacons for you to come out of the darkness."

"I miss her. I missed you."

Loki nodded acknowledging her. "As do I."

"I'm going to take you back inside now." Hela said as she stood.

"Yes, It is hard to say what Thor and his friends are doing at this point."

"Father, his friends don't seem so bad. They actually seem quite nice."

Loki just furrowed his brows and frowned at her. She laughed as she embraced him and they teleported back into Tony Stark's dining room.

She was still laughing when then appeared in the dining room.

"Don't look so concerned, Uncle. I promised that I would bring him back."

Loki chuckled to himself and he strode across the room and lounged back onto one of Tony's couches

"You know you can't just poof away a criminal?" Tony chided Hela.

"I had no intention of 'poofing' away your criminal. I fully planned on returning him to the custody of my uncle." Hela said with a smirk on her face.

Pepper came out of her and Tony's bedroom. "Well, I'm off to DC. I will be back in a week. Try not to get into trouble." She said to Tony as she kissed him. She waved to everyone and left the Penthouse.

Thor called over to Hela. "My niece, come, I want you meet Lady Jane."

Hela glided over to where Thor and Jane stood. "Ah yes, let me meet the woman who changed my uncle so greatly." Hela stopped in front of Jane and gave her a slight curtsey and then shook Jane's hand lightly. "It's very nice to meet you."

Jane smiled. "It's nice to meet you too. I can't believe how much you look like Loki. There's no doubt about the family connection."

Hela gave Jane a big smile.

Tony strolled into the living room where everyone else was sitting; Hela returned to her seat, also.

"Too bad you have to look like him. Look at him sitting over there brooding. What's with you? You have basically been ignoring everyone today."

"I have no more need for your company as you do for mine. I make no assumptions that we are on any kind of friendly terms nor do I seek to establish any kind of friendly terms with you or your friends. I am merely here to tend to my daughter. When she is strong enough to leave this world, I will return to Asgard and serve out the remainder of my sentence."

No one said a word in response. Thor had a slightly dejected frown on his face.

Hela got up to walked towards the dining room. Bruce was coming out of the kitchen as she stopped and fell against the wall, her eyes closed. Bruce reached out to brace her from falling. After a few seconds her eyes opened and she stood up. Loki looked concerned as he got up and started towards her.

She looked around at the floor and around the room a bit of confusion on her face.

"What is it Lady Hela?" Thor said in a concerned voice.

"I am being called to Hel. This is only done if there is an emergency. I must go and determine the reason for this." Hela walked to Thor. "Please do not leave. Please don't take him back before I return."

Thor nodded his head. Loki sat back down on the couch.

She walked over closer to Loki. They smirked at each other, then she turned to Thor. "You should warn your friends about what I am about to do."

"Oh-yes! Ummm, my friends…this is not Lady Hela's only form. She has two forms. You have seen how she looks here, amongst us. Her other form is more suited for her…appointment as the Goddess of the Dead." Thor nodded to himself thinking this was the best explanation. "She is going to shift to this other form and will look….different."

Hela look at the floor and slowly a light began to shine around and through her as she shifted into her other form. It reminded the Avengers of when Loki shifted into his battle armor and back again. It only took a couple of seconds for her to shift forms.

In her new form she wore black boots that extended up to her mid-calf. She had form fitting black leather shorts that extended down to her mid-thigh. They looked similar to the material that Natasha's suit was made of. Over the shorts were thick leather panels that shaped around her like a skirt and moved as she walked. They were black with a smaller panel of dark green in the middle. Her upper body was covered in an armored bodice that extended up her chest and over to her shoulders. It was made of black and green leather panels. Her shoulders were encased in black armored leather shoulder guards that had a greyish-white sculpted skull where her arm met her shoulder. On her back, her weapon was sheathed. It had a handle that was about 24 inches long, wrapped with black leather lacing. The top of the handle held a sickle like blade that about 8 inches long. The blade was not a smooth curve; instead, it had large jagged off-shoots that were sharpened as if they were blades. The other side of the handle opposite the blade there was a sculpted greyish-white skull, similar to the ones on her shoulders, with green emeralds set into the eye sockets. On top of her head, Hela had a small tiara-like crown. It was gold with emeralds lining around the sides. In the center was another sculpted greyish-white skull that matched the others. It was about three inches tall with emeralds set into the eye sockets, as well.

Her attire was not the only thing that changed when Hela shape-shifted. The right side of her body remained unchanged. The left side of her body, however, was a greyish-black color that resembled decaying flesh. Her skin looked like it was torn away in some places, revealing black muscle. The fingers on her left hand were skeletal as if the skin and muscle had decayed away. Her face remained intact but it was still the greyish black color. The hair on the left side of her head was the lightest blonde color. Her eyes remained unchanged and were the same piercing green that they were in her other form.

The Avengers looked stunned. Jane and Steve in addition to being stunned, looked slightly horrified. After Hela shifted, she looked around at the stunned group and smiled. "I know it frightens people when I turn into this form. It's okay, it's still me."

Loki rose and walked over to Hela. "Queen Hela". He bowed his head and took her skeletal hand, lifting it to his lips and kissing her fingers. She smiled at him. He gave her a warm smile. "We will wait here for your return." She nodded her head and turned, smiled at the group and waved to Thor; then she disappeared into the air.

* * *

When Hela arrived in Hel she knew right away something was wrong. There was huge line of people waiting to proceed through the gates into her realm. These people had not died of old age and they didn't appear to have been suffering from sickness. No, these people were of all ages.  _'Why so many souls needing to proceed into this realm at one?'_  she wondered to herself. She had been gone for 2 months. But those who served her in her 'court' would have been able to admit the small amount of people that would have needed admittance during that time. The beings that would enter her realm upon death would not need to enter into Hel in large numbers like this. Why were all of these people here? She would need to expedite this process. She quickly proceeded down the line past all of the individuals, surveying them. She quickly deduced that none of them were wicked and thus not needing to be judged separately. She informed her staff so that they could move the people quickly through the gates and into her realm. _'Where had all these innocent souls come from,'_ again wondering to herself. Something was wrong. She knew who might have answers but she didn't want to speak with her here, without the others. She left instructions with the members of her court and then teleported back to Midgard.

* * *

It was evening when she returned to Stark Tower; all of the Avengers were there as well as Jane. Tony, Bruce and Steve had told Natasha and Clint about what had been going on in the Tower since they had been gone. Hela materialized into an open area in the living room.

Thor quickly rose to his feet. "Lady Hela, what news have you?"

"Something is very wrong. I have a large number of souls waiting for entrance into my realm. A large number of innocent souls who are not plagued by old age or illness. I need to contact someone who might be able to give me more information as to what has caused this. Hela looked to Loki, who stood. "Do you trust me?"

"You know that I do." He answered.

Hela addressed the group. "I must summon Death. I need to speak with her and get her clarity. Since I am not in Hel, there is only one way I can summon Death."

"Hela, what are you meaning to do?" Thor looked uneasy.

"I want to speak with Death  _here_  so that everyone will hear her account. I can summon Death quite easily in my realm. While outside of Hel, the only way to summon Death is to create the need for her to be present."

"Hela, I won't allow you to—" Hela cut Thor off.

"It's the only way. She is the only one close enough to what is happening. I can't use you because your friends will not take too kindly to what will happen to you." She turned to Loki. "You understand what I want to do?"

"Yes."

"Wait, wait, wait! I don't understand what you want to do?" Tony cutting in trying to get a grasp on the situation. Hela looked to Thor.

Thor began to explain. "Hela means to bring Loki to the brink of death in order to summon Death to this place to claim him. She will release her hold on Loki so that he will not be claimed but instead Hela will converse with her friend."

"We must begin quickly, time is of the essence." She walked over to Loki. "I need your arm." He removed his overcoat and slid the sleeve of his tunic up. She spoke to Loki. "It will not be painful. There will be considerable discomfort. Resist the urge to fight against me. When I release my grip, you will quickly return to your previous state." She looked into his eyes. "I love you."

"I love you."

Hela took a deep breath. The air in the penthouse began to feel cooler. She was facing Loki and her skeletal left hand grabbed on to the forearm that Loki had exposed. Slowly, Loki's breathing sped up and he started growing weaker. His body began to get heavier and he dropped to his knees. Hela held his gaze. He began to groan as he felt his life being drained from his body. Hela's eyes grew brighter and almost fiery, never taking them off Loki. She gripped his arm tighter. He began making choking and gasping noises, his body writhing under her grasp. Jane screamed out, "Oh my God, she's killing him!" She turned and buried her face into Thor's chest. The rest of the group looked on in stunned horror. Loki's other hand reached up to grab the hand pulling the life from his body. Hela's free hand reached over pulled Loki's hand away and held it, a single tear slid down the pale side of her face.

Just then a floating figure appeared in the room. A floating apparition clothed in flowing, airy lavender and purple fabrics. She had dark wavy hair and though her face seemed pale at first, it was actually more transparent revealing her skeletal features. The same was true with the rest of her body. She glided slowly through the air over to where Hela was holding Loki, who was so weak he was no longer making noises or moving except for his heaving chest. His face was clammy and his eyes had darkened circles around them, his skin paler than ever.

Hela looked at the apparition. "I must speak with you. Please do not leave."

The ghost-like skeletal figure nodded. Hela released her deathly grip on Loki's arm, but continued to hold his other hand. He inhaled a breath deep and loud as if he had been deprived for air for an eternity. He fell back onto the floor lying on his back. The darkened circles disappeared from his eyes, his breathing slowed to a normal pace and his body regained its strength. All of this occurred quickly, just as Hela had said. Hela smiled at Loki. He returned her smile and nodded his head.

She let go of his hand and turned to the ghost-like figure. "My friend, what is happening?"

The figure bowed her head and shook it, then looked up at Hela. She began to speak, her voice was soft. "Thanos wishes to court Death. He means for me to stay in his presence. He has begun to slaughter people in his homeland in order for me to remain near him."

The others in the room stared at this exchange in silent awe.

"Oh Cide!" Hela went to the floating figure and reached out her mangled hand clasping it around the apparition's airy hand.

"Hela, the halls of Hel will continue to fill with souls of the slain. His army will be an army of death. He seeks to destroy the realms and all those who oppose him. His first target will be Midgard."

The Avengers looked around at each other in shock.

"I must go, now. There are many who are waiting for my embrace."

"I—we, will find a way to stop him." Hela looked into Death's face.

Death bowed her head at Hela and then faded into the air.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted Hela to have a name for Death, since they were friends. I didn't envision her calling her "Death" all the time when they were together. I opted for the nickname "Cide." The root word 'cide' means 'killer', like in the words suicide, homicide.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Later in this chapter I put a spin on the birth/creation of Hela, so no strict mythology there.

Death had disappeared from the Penthouse. No one said anything. The air seemed to carry confusion and shock that enveloped the group. Hela shifted back to her original form without words. She was wearing black pants and a long sleeve black shirt. She walked over to where Loki stood without words and threw her arms around his waist, burying her head into his chest. The group heard her say to him, "I didn't want to hurt you, but I couldn't think of another way." Loki smoothed his hand over her hair. "My child, I know what lies in your heart. Your actions need no explanation."

"You seem tired. You should rest." Hela said as she turned her head and laid it flat on his chest. Loki didn't say anything. Hela pulled away from Loki and looked up at him. "I'm serious."

She walked behind and started pushing him towards the guest bedroom she had used the night before. He allowed her to walk him back towards the room, a slight smile upon his face.

Loki's behavior was so perplexing to the Avengers. It was as if he was a totally different person when he was interacting with Hela. When he spoke with any other one of them it was with disdain; the same disdain they had for him. But when he spoke to his daughter it was with love.

When Hela and Loki left the room the others moved into the living and sat down.

"Why is he acting so weird?" Clint asked the group.

"I know not what you mean?" Thor replied with a questioning look.

"What kind of hold does she have on him?" Clint replied

Thor still looked perplexed. "Loki and Hela have gone through much adversity. Even though they had been separated for much time when she was an adolescent, their bond is strong." He explained.

* * *

Hela marched Loki into the bedroom. "I worry about you, father."

"You shouldn't trouble yourself. You have more important things to deal with."

" _You_  are important to me. And I will always worry." She paused and thought for a couple of seconds. "Can you switch out of that...or I can…"

"I still have the power to switch clothes, yes."

Hela gave Loki an expectant look.

"Alright, I will appease you." He shifted into more casual sleeping clothing and sat on the bed. He looked at Hela and their eyes met, but he didn't say anything.

"What is it?" Hela asked.

"How did Thanos capture you? You are too powerful to be overtaken overtly."

Hela looked at the floor. "I should not wish to tell you. You would be disappointed. It was foolishness on my part and a created weakness that should not have existed."

Loki's eyes narrowed. "Tell me."

She looked at Loki and sighed and then sat next to him on the bed. There was a few silent moments before she started. "Sometimes—," she stopped talking and thought. Then she blurted out, "I like to come to Midgard to watch the people." She breathed in and exhaled loudly. "I like to watch them live their lives. I like to watch children playing or young lovers strolling through the park. I sometimes blend in or I will stayed veiled and invisible." She looked down at her knees disappointed in what she was saying. "I would have rather done it on Asgard, but I can't. Thanos must have had his minions tracking me. I was here one day and a couple of his minions found me. They clamped a band around each of my arms that started draining my magic and I lost consciousness. When I woke up I was in a cell in whatever dark place he inhabits."

There was silence for a few moments again, then Hela started again. "I know that it was a foolish habit to have. I created a weakness. You taught me better than that. I know."

Loki slid his arm around Hela's shoulders and pulled her to him. She laid her head against his chest and sighed.

"I was hell-bent on subjugating this world, thus bringing on the wrath of Earth's mightiest warriors and your uncle, the God of Thunder; all the while planning to betray the mad titan himself. I think I have you beat for creating weaknesses." Loki said, making Hela give a slight laugh.

There was another pause in conversation. "I get lonely sometimes." She confided to him. "I know." He replied.

Hela sat up straight and changed the subject. "You need to rest. It's not every day your daughter almost kills you." Hela laughed as she stood up. She stopped laughing and thought for a moment as Loki got beneath the comforter. "Do you still have nightmares-What I mean is… I can try to give you a dreamless sleep enchantment, if you want. It's hard for me to practice that one because I don't have a lot of living people around me, so it might not last all night." She smiled at him waiting for his response.

He smiled back at her. "I won't deny you an opportunity to practice."

Hela nodded and kissed her father's cheek. She closed her eyes for a moment and then reopened them. She mouthed an incantation silently as she flicked her wrist a couple of times. Green tendrils of magic swirled around Loki as he relaxed into the bed and the magic pulsed into him. He fell into calm sleep.

With a flick of her wrist she shut off the lamp and exited the room.

When she returned to the living room, only Thor, Tony and Bruce remained.

She took a seat on the opposite end of the sofa that Thor was sitting on.

"My niece, you must try this delicious drink." Thor said handing her a mug. "It is called 'hot chocolate.'"

Hela took the mug and tried the drink. She smiled at Thor. "It is very good."

Bruce turned to Hela. "I have a question for you." Hela nodded for him to proceed.

"What were you doing to Loki in the guest room?" Bruce questioned.

Hela looked at him with a quizzical look.

"I walked past the guest room and saw you flicking your wrist and saw these green ribbons of light swirling around him and then absorb into his body. What was that?"

Hela looked surprised. "It was an….. enchantment that I cast on him." She looked over to Thor.

Thor looked at her and said quietly, "Dreamless sleep?" Hela nodded her head.

Thor spoke in the direction Tony and Bruce. "My brother has always been plagued by nightmares. He often does not sleep because of them. My niece cast a spell on him so that he would not dream while he slept."

"I don't think it will last all night. I haven't been able to really practice that enchantment, so it is not perfection." Hela chimed in.

"I'm sure the time that it does work will be most beneficial." Thor leaned over and squeezed her shoulder, giving her a reassuring smile.

Tony, Thor and Bruce began conversing about various happenings around Stark Tower and Shield.

There was a break in the conversation and Hela spoke up and addressed Thor. "Uncle, I have decided that Hel will align with Asgard in defense of Midgard."

"Hel? How are you going to be able to help us?" Tony questioned.

"I have an army."

Tony shuddered when she said that. He had heard that phrase said before with the same conviction. It was odd however, to hear it said this time as an offer of help.

She turned to Thor. "I understand if you don't want to use my army. I will use it elsewhere, if needed, if you chose not to use it here. But  _I_  will help you fight in defense of this realm." Thor smiled broadly and nodded. He seemed proud of what he heard. "Yes, Lady-Queen Hela. I would very much like you to fight side by side with us. Stark, do not underestimate my niece, she holds immense power and would be an asset in our fight."

"We're going to need to approval from Fury, first." Tony said. He sent Natasha a text about a new possible ally so that she could get Fury's approval. The less Tony had to deal with Fury the better.

"Uncle, you have to take my father back to Asgard. He can't be here without his magic when Thanos or his forces arrive." She told Thor, urgency in her voice.

"Aye, Lady Hela. I agree that he should not remain here, especially when unable to fully defend himself." Thor nodded in agreement.

"You know speaking of your parents." Tony jumped in. "I asked Loki about your mother yesterday. He was really quick to change the subject. Did mommy and daddy not get along after you were born?"

Hela seemed amused by Tony's question. She had a huge smile on her face and looked at Thor who had a smirk on his face.

"I wasn't actually 'born'." Hela began to explain. Confusion spread across Tony and Bruce's face.

Hela got a bit more serious and began to explain. "My mother was Angrboda. She was a giantess and almost as powerful as Loki. They were 'associates'. There was never any kind of love between them. They decided to create an offspring through magic. They figured that this offspring would have equal, if not greater power, than each of them.  _I_  am that creation. They had a falling out of sorts and when my father when back to Asgard, he took me with him. I spent my childhood in the palace. When the Allfather saw what kind of power I had, as well as my other form; he decided to send me away when I came of age. I was probably the equivalent of a Midgardian teenager. He sent me to underworld and named it after me. I became the Goddess of the Dead; the Queen of Hel." Hela paused and took a sip of her drink. "So to answer your question, 'no' they did not get along. I think my father could get physically ill thinking of her. Especially when people assumed that they….conceived me by tradition methods." This made Hela and Thor chuckle.

JARVIS spoke during the break in conservation. "Sir, there seems to be a disturbance in the guest room where Loki is sleeping."

"What's going on?" Tony questioned.

"It appears that he is having a rather intense nightmare."

"Thanks, JARVIS." Tony replied.

Hela's frowned as her heart sank. She said to no one in particular. "It wore off." It was 1 am and had been about 4 hours since she had cast the spell. "I'll wake him." She said to Thor and she got up and retreated to the guest bedroom.

When she entered she heard her father making whimpering noises and crying out 'no'. She flicked the light on with a twist of magic and sat on the edge of the bed. Loki was thrashing his head and arms back and forth and mumbling words she could not make out.

She put her hand on his shoulder and shook him. "Father, wake up."

He started crying 'no' again. She grabbed both of his shoulders shaking him and said louder, "Loki wake up!"

No change. Loki's fists were clenched and his body was tensing up as he tried to curl in on himself.

Hela moved her hand to the side of Loki's face cupping his cheek and holding his head still. She moved down spoke into his ear. "Pabbi, wake up. I'm here. Pabbi, wake up. Come to my voice, follow it and wake up. I've got you. Wake up. I've got you."

Hela felt Loki startle awake. She lifted her face away from his ear and sat up, Loki looked around the room and then at her; then he followed her into a sitting position. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. She whispered, "I'm sorry it didn't last longer."

"No worries, my child. You gave me 4 hours of restful sleep." Loki replied as he patted her back. "You can go on back out. I'll be out shortly." She smiled at Loki and proceeded back out to the living room.

She sat back down where she was seated before. The three other men were engaged in a conversation about Tony's latest mishap in the lab.

A few minutes later Loki came out of the bedroom and sat on one of the cushioned chairs. He appeared deep in thought.

When Tony finished his story, Thor and Bruce laughed at the outcome. No one spoke for a few moments.

"Will Thanos be able to reach you or anyone else when they are in your realm?" Loki asked. Hela knew this question was directed towards her.

"No, of course not. Not even Odin can pull someone out of the depths of my realm. I hold the sole power over Hel and I protect those who dwell there. You know about my power over Death and my realm" Hela responded. The look on her face indicated that she thought Loki should know this information.

"Will Odin's spell that binds my magic work in Hel?"

"No. It shouldn't." Hela looked questioning at Loki.

Loki thought for a moment and then got up and walked over to Hela, she stood up to meet him. He held her at her elbows. "Hela, then let us go. Take me to Hel with you. Thanos cannot touch me there, Odin cannot bind me there. Let me serve you in your court for the rest of eternity."

Hela stared at Loki, processing what he was proposing. She turned her gaze at the floor, thinking about what he was offering. She looked up at Loki and smiled. She chuckled to herself.

"Always a plan..." She said to Loki and she smirked. Loki looked into her face, searching for her answer, trying to hide his anxiousness. She did not answer.

"I will serve you well, daughter. No one will take you away from me again."

Hela's face became serious, understanding the impact of Loki's last sentence.

Thor broke in. "Hela no! You cannot take him with you. I will not hold you to your offer to fight here, but you cannot take Loki with you to Hel."

"It would work, wouldn't it?" She said to Loki, ignoring Thor. There were several moments of silence as she appeared to be considering Loki's idea.

Just then there was a crack of thunder and lightning shot across the sky. Odin suddenly appeared in the middle of the living room.

Bruce and Tony backed away into the dining room watching the scene about to unfold. "Shit, just got real. I'm assuming that the big man." Tony said to Bruce. "This episode will be for sweeps week when we need high ratings. The commercials will say 'Special Appearance by Odin.'" Bruce just shook his head at Tony in disbelief. "You really don't know how to let things go, do you?"

Loki, Hela, Thor looked surprised as they stood beside each other in a line, with Hela in the middle, as they faced Odin. Upon seeing him, Thor and Loki knelt where there were. Hela had instantly shifted into the form she took when she traveled back to Hel; she remained standing.

"Lady Hela.. kneel." Thor implored just above a whisper. She looked down at Thor and then back to Odin.

"Odin is not my king and I am not in his throne room." Hela replied evenly looking at Odin. Odin gave a very slight bow of his head in response.

"Father, it is surprising to see you here. We were not expecting you." Thor addressed Odin.

Odin and Hela had not taken their eyes off each other.

"Would you take him?" Odin said to Hela, almost ignoring Thor's words.

"I see Heimdall must have informed you of what was transpiring here." Hela replied to Odin.

"Would you take him to Hel with you?" Odin asked again.

"It would prove that you were right, if I did. Wouldn't it? Would you feel validated in your decision?" Hela swallowed hard after she replied.

"You have yet to answer the question." Odin responded.

"There is no trust from you. You continue to believe that he would manipulate me….and that I would either let him or not even realize that he was manipulating me." Hela replied anger starting rise in her voice and her face. "I make my own decisions! I'm not Loki's pawn!" She yelled. Loki and Thor slowly rose from their kneeling positions. They stood with Hela in between them, watching the exchange between her and Odin.

"Despite what you think, I still believe that it was the right course of action to send you to Hel so that your powers could develop free from your father's influence. It was obvious that you were going to be very powerful. You needed to develop this on your own without your father's corruption. I stand by my decision because I do not know if you would be the being you are today, the ruler you are today, the daughter you are today, if I hadn't sent you away! You and Frigga are the only ones that can challenge and stand up to Loki and he not be thrown into a fit of rage because of it! I know that he cherishes you; you are one of the few things that he does. It was not an easy decision to send you away. I know the heartache that it caused, not just for the two of you. There are some powers that you hold over your realm that not even I can interfere with. I know that you exercise this power with deliberate thought and free from influence. I have come here now, to find out what your decision is regarding the proposition my son has just given you."

There was a minute of silence. Hela's face softened. "You have to admit, it's a clever scheme. It would actually work."

"Indeed." Odin nodded.

Hela seemed to be in thought as several quiet moments passed.

"It's amazing the scheme one can develop in order to create… a choice… when a choice does not… initially exist." Hela ended her statement. She nodded her head at the ground and then looked to Odin. She then gave him a smirk and a knowing look.

Odin thought for a moment and nodded as if understood a silent message between the two of them. He gave a quiet, yet visible chuckle to himself that made his one eye close. "Queen Hela, you are wise beyond your years."

"That I am, grandfather." She said smiling. He laughed and stepped towards her and patted her arm.

Thor and Loki both had confused looks on their faces and they continued to watch.

Odin stepped back to his original place and nodded his head, continued to smile back at her. With a grand booming voice Odin proclaimed, "Queen Hela, Goddess of the Dead in the Realm of Hel, I accept your alliance in defense of Midgard against the titan, Thanos. It is up to the Midgardian warriors as to whether or not to accept your offer to fight and the offer of your army of the dead to aid in this venture. Asgard will not interfere in the use of your army in other realms that you have offered to defend against Thanos." Hela nodded to Odin accepting his terms of alliance. Then she shifted back into her more Asgardian looking form. He smiled at Hela and continued. "Loki Odinson-"

"Laufeyson" Loki tried correcting Odin. Odin gave Loki a scowl. Hela jabbed Loki with her elbow. She said just above a whisper, "Father, blood isn't the only thing that makes you family. You know that." Loki shook his head with an eye roll.

Odin smiled at his granddaughter, knowing that if he or Thor had said the same thing, his son would have had a much different response. He continued, "Loki Odison, I offer to you…a choice." Hela smiled as Odin continued. "If you align yourself alongside your brother and your daughter as they fight with the Midgardian warriors in an effort to defeat Thanos; I will consider your sentence complete and your freedom will be restored. Should you make this choice, I will unbind your magic entrusting you to use your talent to the best of your abilities during this. The Midgardian warriors will also need to approve of your assistance in order for this to occur."

"And if don't choose this option?" Loki questioned.

"Then, seeing as your daughter is fully recovered from her ordeal at the hands of Thanos, I will take you back to Asgard with me now so that you can continue serving your sentence."

Loki turned to Hela. "Am I to assume that you are no longer considering the original option that I presented to you?"

Hela looked at Loki and sighed while closing her eyes. She opened them and smiled at her father. "I think a better choice has been presented." Loki looked away and nodded his head, thinking.

He turned to Odin. "Must I make a decision at this moment?"

"No, my son. I will return tomorrow evening for your decision." Odin said evenly. He turned to face Hela again. "Lady Hela, when your work is done here and you decide to leave this realm, you are permitted to come to Asgard for a short period of time so that you might have an audience with the Queen."

Hela, Loki and Thor looked at Odin with the shock clearly visible on their faces. Hela's eyes grew wide and a bright smile lit up her face. She surged forward wrapping her arms around Odin. She whispered, "Thank you" so that only Odin could hear it. He leaned into her and whispered in her ear, "My dear, you have earned this. You serve your father well. You have made me proud."

Hela stepped back into line. Thor had a broad smile on his face; Loki a small smile of contentment. The three of them bowed their heads at Odin. Odin turned to Tony and Bruce and nodded his head at them. Bruce nodded back and Tony gave a wave.

In an instant Odin was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Pabbi" is Icelandic for Daddy. (couldn't find an Old Norse word other than the one for father. If you have a suggestion, let me know). I'm finding that I like Hela kind of protective of Loki (and that he goes along with it because it's her). I also think that Loki would have been a younger adult when he created Hela in order to keep him within the movieverse age range. I think that makes their relationship unique as well (he wasn't an older seasoned adult when he became a parent). For this story, I think that Thor, Loki and Hela would all be considered young by Aesir standards and that to a third party Hela might look to be the younger sister to the two brothers and not necessarily the child of one of them.
> 
> I hope that makes sense.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So many feels in this chapter. We start with Angry/Everyone-is-against-me-Loki overtaking Daddy-Loki and the aftermath…Yipes. This chapter also contains a remembrance by Thor about Loki. Thor's story is lengthy but that's where the feels are…you may need a tissue.

Hela woke up the morning after Odin's visit and proceeded out to the living room area. Thor and Jane were in the kitchen with Tony. Bruce and Natasha were at the dining room table. Loki was sitting on one of the living room chairs reading a book that he had acquired from one of the book shelves in the guest bedroom.

"Good Morning," Hela said to Loki as she sat on one of the sofas.

He gave her no reply.

"What are you reading?"

Again, no answer.

Hela thought for a minute. "Are you angry with me?

No answer.

At that point the others in the area had noticed what was going on and began to watch Loki and Hela's exchange.

Hela got up and shoved Loki's knee to the side to get his attention. "Are you angry with me because I'm not going to go with your plan?"

He didn't answer but got up and started to walk out of the room. He stopped before he left the living room. "Why are you going to help them?"

"I want to stop Thanos." She answered.

"So you would risk yourself again in order to help your uncle's friends and his favorite 'pet' realm?" Loki questioned.

"I'm helping my friend, too. And, I know what Thanos is like and what he can do. If I can help stop him, I will." She replied.

"And you'll do that instead of helping me?" Loki questioned her.

Hela got up and walked over to Loki. "You can help yourself. You heard what the Allfather offered you."

"He offered me a chance to risk myself for Thor's friends and for his favorite little world." Loki paused. "What are you hoping to gain from this?"

"I'm not hoping to get anything out of this?" Hela looked almost confused.

"Are you sure? You're not hoping that in the end Thor's friends will then be your friends because you helped them save their little planet? Is that what this is about, your need for friends?"

Hela was taken aback. "You know, while it may be true that the friends that I do have are all dead, I least I have them. I don't push everyone away. I actually try. You don't even do that." She yelled. She started to storm away.

Loki grabbed her wrist to keep her from storming away. She shocked him with a jolt of magic so that he would let her go.

He grabbed her on her upper arms and held her in place, anger in his eyes. "You insolent child. Don't you use your magic against me. Remember who created you."

"Is that why you made me, then?" She yelled at him. "So that  _you_  could use my power when you needed it. You  _wanted_  me to be your pawn. And now that I am not going to do your bidding…now, you have no use of me! I am not even worthy of you speaking to me." She tried to shake loose of Loki's hold but he would not let her go.

She started again. "Why did you make me like this, then? Perhaps you failed at creating what you originally intended…you didn't get your minion that did everything you wanted. I'm sorry to have disappointed you…. _father_."

She flicked her fingers and sent a sharp pulse of magic towards Loki that knocked him backwards, releasing her arms as he stumbled back. Before he could steady himself and respond to her, she teleported herself out of the room.

Loki stared into the space where Hela had been. Thor approached him. Loki looked at Thor. "What I have I done?"

Tony spoke up. "JARVIS do you see where she went?"

"Sir, she seems to be popping in and out of places. Now she seems to be staying put. She is in the garden area on the patio." JARVIS answered.

"I must go talk to her." Loki started to walk away but Thor stopped him by putting his hand on Loki's opposite shoulder. "Brother, she is angry. Give her time to cool off. Let me talk to her." Thor told him.

Loki swallowed hard and nodded. He retreated back to the guest room.

Thor proceeded out to the patio.

When Thor went outside, Tony spoke out loud. "JARVIS do you have a video feed from that part of the patio?."

"Yes, sir."

"Send the feed with the audio to the flat screen in the theater room. I have a feeling this might be worth hearing."

Tony, Bruce, Natasha and Jane gathered onto the seating surrounding Tony's flat screen in the next room.

* * *

Thor found Hela sitting on the brick patio overlooking the city. She started to yell something but stopped when she looked and saw that it was Thor approaching her. She looked back out on the cityscape. Thor sat down beside her.

Thor looked out on the city and after a minute or two, he spoke. "Did you ever wonder why Loki didn't protest when our father wanted to send you to Hel?"

"No, I just figured that the Allfather had made his decision so we were going to have to accept it." Hela replied, still looking out over the city.

"Have you ever known your father to just accept a decision made by our father?"

Hela thought a moment. "No, I guess not." She shrugged.

Thor nodded and then spoke again. "You were an infant when you first came to Asgard and you seemed to act like any other infant for the most part. Loki was your parent but we had hand-maidens that would do most of the tasks associated with taking care of an infant. This wouldn't have been unusual in the palace; especially since your mother was not present."

Hela nodded, following along with Thor train of thought.

He continued, telling this story slowly and deliberately. "One day you seemed to have gotten very sick. You weren't crying and wailing; but you were not acting normal for you. Something was wrong so Loki had taken you to the healers. They were not sure what was wrong with you. A couple of days passed and you had gotten worse. They really had no answers for your father because you were so… unique. They had never seen someone who had come into being as you did. They told Loki to prepare himself for the chance that you would not recover and would cease living. Your father decided to take you out of the healing room and back to his rooms. He dismissed all of the handmaidens who had been caring for you. He became your sole caregiver. He held you night and day. It took convincing for him to let our mother and myself hold you so that he could sleep for a bit and bathe. He was resolute in that you were to always be held during this time you had with him, you would never be alone in a crib. He would walk with you in his arms all throughout the gardens, telling you about all of the flowers and plant life. He took you all throughout the palace telling about what each room was. He took you through the Grand Library showing you all of the books full of knowledge. When he wasn't telling you about something, he was humming lullabies that our mother used to sing to us."

Thor slide closer to Hela and continued. "It had been about a week since the day that he took you from the healing room. He took you to the Bifrost Bridge and he sat in the observatory and told you all about the Yggdrasil and the 9 realms. He showed you Heimdall and told you all about what his duty was. And then you two sat and looked out into the cosmos for the longest time. Two days later, he decided to take you into the throne room. It was on a day when the citizens could have audience with the King and it nearing the end of the session. There were no more citizens waiting for their turn so your father entered the room. I was standing to the right of the Allfather during this particular session. As he was entering the throne room, cradling you, he explained to you how you were supposed to enter. He told you how far to walk up before you supposed to kneel. When he got to the spot where the citizenry would stand before the King he turned you around and told you about each person in the room and why they were there. He told you what to do when the King dismissed you and how since you were a girl you would curtsey and he pulled your blanket like it was a skirt and bobbed you down and then up in a pretended curtsey. It made me chuckle as well as some other people in the room. Our father just watched Loki with an interested curiosity. Then you two left."

Thor put his arm around Hela. "The next day you did not wake up in the morning as you usually did. You were breathing but you were not awake. Loki stayed in our mother's study with her that day. He wouldn't let anyone else take you out of his arms. About noontime, you still had not woken up and your breathing was very slow. Your father began to sob with you in his arms. When I came into the study with my father about an hour later my mother was sitting on the floor holding your father as he sobbed into her chest, cradling you into his own. My father looked at them for a moment and then left. I sat in the study with them. There was nothing I could do but I did not want to leave."

Thor paused to wipe the tears that were pooling in the corners of his eyes and then used his thumb to wipe away the ones that fell out of Hela's. He continued. "About an hour later a guard came to the study and said that the King wanted to see Loki in the garden and that he was to bring you with him. My mother and I helped him get to his feet. He slowly walked with you to the garden. My mother and I had our arms around him to steady him and move him along. When we got to the garden my father motioned for us to stay back as Loki approached him. He brought Loki to a bench and sat beside him. It was a most usual sight. Our father said, 'you love her.' It wasn't a question, more of an observation. Your father just nodded his head. Then our father told him that he had been researching and studying and believed that he might be able to help heal you. Loki looked at our father in disbelief. My father asked my brother if he could hold you. He could barely let you go, but our father took you into his hands. He studied you and told Loki that you were 'a pretty little thing' which made your father half laugh when he agreed. And then the Allfather said 'she looks like you, I'm assuming that was intentional' to which your father said 'of course it was.' Then the Allfather told Loki that he had to agree to something before he would heal you. Your father had to agree that if the Allfather had to make a decision about you that was in your best interest, Loki could not protest it, no matter how much he wanted to. Your father promptly agreed and the Allfather spread his magic through you and whispered several enchantments. As they waited, our father told Loki that he felt the great power inside you, that you were unique and that you would probably have another form other than the one you were currently in. They stared at you for what seemed like the longest time and then you took the deepest breath and opened your eyes. When you saw your father looking at you over your grandfather's arms you smiled at him and cooed. Loki scooped you up and our mother and I ran over the three of you. I have never seen your father that happy again. My father told Loki that you two would have a bond stronger than most."

Thor paused and then continued again. "You grew just like any other child. As soon as you could talk, your father started teaching you magic. You became very skilled which was no surprise because of who was teaching you. You even started to pick up some of your father's personality traits. Loki started exploring darker magic, he started to become more jealous and his mischief was starting be more than just pranks and jests. The Allfather started to see these things and became concerned that Loki would drag you into his darkness and corrupt your power."

"That's when he decided to send me away." Hela acknowledged.

Thor nodded. "Your father agreed long ago that he would not protest this decision and he said not a word." He turned to face Hela. "I don't know what your father's intention was when he created you. But  _I_  saw him when he thought that he had lost you. Hela, you are not his pawn, you are not his minion. You are his daughter. The Allfather said that you were one of the few things that Loki cherishes, we know this, because we have seen it."

Thor pulled Hela into an embrace. "You and I are no strangers to your father's mood swings and fits. He knows you made the right decision for you. He doesn't want to admit it to himself."

"I know." She told Thor.

Thor got up and pulled Hela to her feet. "Thor, you are my favorite uncle." She said as she linked her arm through his arm that he extended.

Thor laughed heartily. "And you Hela, are my favorite niece." They walked back into the main room of Tony's penthouse just as the others were exiting Tony's theater room. Jane was wiping tears from her eyes and she walked up to Thor. Hela proceed away from them as Jane began whispering into Thor ear about how sweetly he had spoken to Hela. Hela look at Tony and started to ask where Loki was. Tony pointed to the guest room.

Hela nodded and walked back to into the room.

Loki was sitting in one of the cushioned chairs when Hela walked in. He glanced over at her but didn't say anything.

She sat on the edge of the bed facing the chair Loki was sitting in but looked at the floor instead of him. "I'm sorry," she said. "I was wrong."

"I should be the one apologizing to you." He told her.

She nodded her head in acceptance.

"What did Thor say to you?" He asked her, neither one of them making eye contact, but instead looking in different places on the floor.

"He told me a story from when I was an infant." She answered him.

Loki froze and then turned at looked at Hela. She looked up at him and their eyes me and then they smiled at each other.

"Did you really pull my blanket like a skirt and bobbed me down to curtsey in front of Odin?"

Loki sighed and rolled his eyes with a smile on his face. "Yeeessss."

She laughed.

Hela thought for a moment. "Have you decided what you are going to do?"

"Not yet." He replied. "There might not be a decision to make, if the mortals' great leader does not approve of my assistance."

Hela nodded in acknowledgement. Just as she did Bruce came into the room and told them, "We all need to go to the SHIELD headquarters to discuss alliances."

Hela and Loki got up and met with the others as they all headed off to SHIELD.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter came out of nowhere for me but I liked the idea of getting a glimpse of the past, before Loki really lost his mind, so to speak. We are going to visit SHIELD in the next chapter….plus something intriguing is going to catch Hela's eye.


	7. Chapter 7

Hela and Loki left the guest bedroom and met the others in the living room of Tony's penthouse.

"We are taking the quinjet. We have to meet Fury on the Helicarrier." Natasha told everyone.

Once everyone was boarded on the quinjet, they departed for the Helicarrier that was floating off the coast of New York.

* * *

After the jet landed on the Helicarrier, everyone gathered in a meeting room with Nick Fury at the head of the room.

Thor led Hela up to Fury.

"Ah, Director Fury, this is my niece Hela, Queen of Hel and guardian of the dead. She has offered to fight alongside us and the use of her army if you would deem it necessary." Thor said with a proud smile on his face.

Fury quirked an eyebrow as he looked Hela over. "You are going to  _fight_?"

Thor chimed in before Hela could say anything. "Don't be fooled by appearances Fury. Hela is very powerful. She wields magic as great as Loki does and even possesses power that he does not. She would be an asset to the team."

"Were are going to need to discuss this." Fury waved his hand to indicate he was referring to the whole group. Hela strode to the back of the room and stood along the wall next to Loki.

"So if I'm understanding this correctly, there is going to be another attack on this planet. This Thanos is the one who orchestrated the other attack and is the one that is going to launch this attack." Fury spoke to the whole group.

"Yeah, that pretty much sums up what we found out." Tony replied.

"And where did you get this information about the new attack?" Fury questioned.

"Um, from– like- the angel of death?" Steve responded unsure if that was the right response.

"She's not an angel. Those are Midgardian entities." Hela corrected.

Fury pinched the bridge of his nose with his one eye closed as he tried to process this information.

"And you want to help us fight this attack?" Fury pointed over to Hela.

Hela nodded her head.

"And your father has offered you the opportunity to fight if we let you?" Fury addressed Loki.

Loki gave a slight nod.

"How can we trust you?" Fury questioned.

"It benefits me greatly if Thanos is destroyed. If I chose to help you, I would not do anything to impede that goal from being achieved." Loki responded.

Just then Hela abruptly shifted away from Loki along the wall and held her palms up to cover her eyes. She removed her hands revealing her wide eyes. She looked around the room. "I have a messenger arriving. He will mean you no harm." She took to a deep breath, walked a few paces from the wall and shifted into her half-dead/half-alive form. Nick Fury and Agent Hill looked on wide eyes at the transformation. Everyone else seemed used to this.

A male figure materialized in the room kneeling at Hela's feet. "Rise." Hela commanded and the "man" stood. He was taller than Hela; around 6 foot tall. He had muscle tone but his skin was bluish-grey. He had some of the same gashes that Hela had on his face. He had shoulder length fine brown hair that had a slight wave to it. He was wearing black pants and boots and a black military style jacket that looked like it came from the Napoleonic era and was tattered and worn.

"My Queen." He said with a nod.

"Hamundr, what brings you here?" Hela inquired.

"My Queen, we have had another influx of souls waiting for admittance. It is larger than before and unlike last time, there are souls that are not innocent and require judgment."

"Send the ones that are pure through, I will return to judge those who are left and pronounce sentence when I am through here. I will need to figure out an alternative plan until this business with Thanos is concluded. I sent word of our alliance with Asgard last night after I spoke with Odin. Did you receive it?"

"Yes, my Queen." Hamundr responded. "We have begun mobilizing our forces and will be ready for your command when you call upon us."

"Excellent. I do not know if aid in the form of troops will be accepted but I want you ready in case we are needed without warning. You are to continue command of the troops in Hel until I returned or you are called to me. We may need to move to defend Jotunheim, if needed." Hela instructed.

"Yes, my Queen." Hamundr nodded his head and then kneeled. Hela swiped her hand through the air and the figure that was Hamundr dissolved away.

Hela decided to remain in her half dead/half alive form. She repositioned herself next to Loki. He gave her a sly smirk noting that she decided to stay in the imposing form. She matched his smirk with one of her own.

"Uh, is your army made up with guys like that?" Clint asked.

"My army is an army of the dead, yes, if that is what you are inquiring. It works to my advantage when my troops are already dead." Hela answered in a matter-of-fact manner.

"I need to discuss all of this with my group. I need you three to wait in the next room." Fury said indicating that he wanted Thor, Loki and Hela to leave the rest of them alone.

The three of them left. Thor looked a little dismayed that he was not allowed to engage in the discussion about Hela and possibly Loki's assistance in fighting Thanos.

Silence fell over the three of them when they sat in the empty meeting room across from where the others were.

Hela finally broke the silence. "Uncle, tell me about your mortal woman."

Thor perked up with this opportunity.

Loki rolled his eyes. "I have had to listen to him expound on the virtues of his woman on a weekly basis since I have been imprisoned." Loki let out a sigh.

Hela chuckled. "Well,  _I_ haven't heard about her. Tell me about her Uncle."

Thor began with almost giddiness in his voice. "She is kind and caring. She is so smart and always inquisitive. She is always searching for knowledge. You have seen her beauty. She has shown me what is like to actually live. It is pure bliss just to hold her in my arms. I can go on and on and I can't seem to run out of the amazing things about her."

Hela smiled a genuine smile as she listened to Thor talk about…no gush over Jane. "She sounds wonderful, Uncle."

"Believe this, he will go on and on to prove there is no end. Save yourself now child before you too are crushed beneath the virtues of Jane Foster." Loki snarked.

Thor ignored Loki's commentary. "Aye, she is wonderful. I think very soon I will ask her to marry me."

Hela eyes widened brightly. "That's fantastic!" She gave Thor a hug.

Loki sat stunned and wordless.

"Brother, don't be so shocked. You had to know this was coming." Thor told Loki.

Loki thought for a moment. "I can't believe you are actually going to settle down with one woman. The maidens in Asgard will go into a period of mourning at the announcement of your engagement."

This comment made Hela snort with laughter. Thor couldn't help but grin.

After Hela's laughter subsided, Thor added. "She has made me a better man. I can't imagine life without her. I don't want a life without her."

Hela couldn't remember when the last time was that she had been in the presence of her father and uncle together and there was actually contentment in the air. She wondered how long this would last.

Steve opened the door to the room. "We are ready for you three again."

They reentered the room where all of the other Avengers were with Fury and Agent Hill.

"Fury, what say you in regards to the offer of aid from my niece and brother?" Thor quickly asked.

"We will accept Hela and Loki's help in fighting this new threat. However, we do not want a foreign army of the dead on the soil of this planet. And rest assured that at the first sign of betrayal by either of you, we will unleash our full force in order to suppress you." Fury declared.

"Very well. My army will be useful elsewhere." Hela nodded and then looked over at Loki with an imploring look on her face.

Loki sighed. "Fine. I will fight with you. Not for defense of Midgard but merely for my freedom."

Hela's face lit up as she nodded and looked over at Thor who was equally pleased.

A nameless agent came into the room. "Director Fury, we have a disturbance."

"Is it them already?" Steve asked.

"It doesn't seem like a full force, maybe some scouts." The nameless agent replied.

They exited the room and went to the bridge of the Helicarrier. On Fury's screens he could see the small force of Chitauri soldiers only numbering about 15 moving through the area where they landed in upstate New York.

"Go and take these few out before they get close to civilian population." Fury ordered.

"Alright suit up everyone; be on the jet in 5 minutes." Steve directed.

Hela looked at Thor and she linked her arm through Loki's. "Thor, my father cannot go."

"I can speak for myself, child." Loki furrowed his brows when he talked.

"Brother, you are not at your full strength of magic. I do not think you should accompany us this time. Father will be here this evening and will restore your magic." Thor stated.

"I will remain here until you return." Loki replied.

"I'm not leaving him; not when he doesn't have all his power." Hela jumped in.

Thor nodded. He knew Hela always had a protective nature when it came to her father. Sometimes she seemed to act more as the parent in her way to protect and soothe Loki.

The quinjet left the Helicarrier 2 minutes later and headed off to upstate New York.

Surveillance on the ground allowed the battle to be broadcast on to the monitors on the bridge as Fury watched the team land and assess the enemy forces. Hela sat in an empty chair in front of a monitor. Loki stood at the back of the bridge diagonally from Hela was sitting.

As Hela watched the battle begin on the monitors she focused in on Dr. Banner wondering what his role in this fight was going to be. He didn't seem to possess super strength like Steve. He didn't have a special suit like Tony did. He didn't seem the fighter like Natasha or the master of a weapon like Clint and he certainly didn't possess the power that her uncle had. She continued watching the monitor and then let out a surprised gasp as Bruce changed into the Hulk. She had an open mouth smile on her face and wide eyes as she watched him in the full force of "the other guy" launch into the fray and begin taking out the enemy forces. Loki noticed Hela's demeanor and studied her as she watched the Hulk on the monitors. He had noticed her stealing glances at the doctor and smiling at him while they were in Stark's abode. Now she was even more fascinated with him once she saw the hidden power that Banner unleashed.

Hela shifted into her Aesir form as she continued to watch the monitors. Loki wondered how it was possible that his daughter had become infatuated with a mortal just like Thor was. She had only been here for 2 days.

The battle raged on for a half an hour as the Avengers made short work of this small force of Chitauri.

The team recollected themselves; Banner returning to his normal form. They boarded the quinjet and flew back to the Helicarrier.

Once they had returned the team plus Loki and Hela gathered in the conference room where they had met earlier, waiting for their final clearance before departing the Helicarrier to return to Stark Tower.

Loki was sitting across the table from Hela. Thor was sitting beside her. The other Avengers were sitting in various places around the table.

"Father, after we return to Stark Tower; I need to depart. I need to go see Hades before I go to Hel." Hela informed Loki.

"Hela! I don't think this is the time for you to be seeking to fulfil your urges." Loki chided. The room grew silent as Hela looked at Loki with a horrified look on her face.

"I'm not—that's not why I-." Hela continued to move her mouth but no more words would come out.

"Really Hela, you still fancy Hades, the Olympian?" Thor chimed in. Loki grinned, mischief in his eyes.

Hela's eyes grew wide and she turned to glare at Thor. "What? No! I had a crush on Hades  _ages_  ago….Besides he has Persephone. We can stop talking about this now."

"Yes Hela, that crush caused you to ignore any young men that sought you out in Asgard during your formative years." Loki added. The other Avengers continued to listen to this exchanged with amused looks on their faces.

Hela's disbelieving expression did not fade as she turned to Loki. "Father, there were no young men seeking out the daughter of the God of Mischief and the niece to the God of Thunder in Asgard. I hate to burst your bubble. If you two didn't frightened them away, I probably would have."

Thor cut in, trying to mask his smirk. "Tell me Hela, have you found the prospects for mates better in Hel or perhaps you have found luck on another realm?"

As if it was possible for Hela to be any more shocked than she already was. "We are not having this conversation!"

"Perhaps you should find yourself a mortal like Thor has" Loki quipped gesturing towards Thor. Thor chuckled out loud.

"What?!" Hela exclaimed.

"Oh come now!" Loki responded. "I've seen the way Dr. Banner has caught your eye. And I saw that glee in your demeanor when you saw him transform into the beast and then back to his mild mannered self. You were positively beside yourself, giggling like you were an adolescent."

Hela's faced flushed and her mouth dropped opened as she stared at her father after he finished making this announcement. Thor and Loki exchanged matching grins. Tony and Natasha both looked at Bruce with wide eyes as he looked down at the files in his hand, a slight smile on his face.

Finally Hela's mouth was able to form words. "Sometimes I hate it when you have mischief on your mind."

 


	8. Chapter 8

Hela left Hades with more understand, which is what she was seeking. She ventured back into her realm, cycling through the dead that had entered the place since she had last left. After pronouncing judgment on those souls that were not innocent, she left orders with her court and returned to Midgard. Odin had just left after lifting the spell that bound Loki's magic. He was now at his full strength. All of the other Avengers had gathered around the table in Tony's penthouse.

Steve started. "We should talk about what we are going up against."

"Yeah, who is this guy?" Clint chimed in.

"He is from a race called the Titans. Most of this race are long since gone." Thor began. "Many ages ago, before any of us were born, Thanos fought to conquer the realms. He was defeated after much bloodshed but he escaped in the end. He has not been heard from in quite some time. Apparently he has been existing in the darkest areas in the abyss between the realms."

"Why would he attack us?" Bruce asked.

"Midgard lies in the center the Yggdrasil, the Tree of Life. From Midgard, access to the other 8 realms is more direct." Thor answered.

"So if he conquers this planet, it would essentially serve as his base of operations while he tries to take out the other realms." Steve formulated.

"It seems that would be a valid assumption." Thor said.

"How is he going to get here? Last time there needed to be a portal opened for the Chitauri to get through and the Tesserat was need for that." Tony questioned.

"Aye, and the Tesserat is secured in the weapons vault in Asgard." Thor added.

There was silence for a few moments.

"Maybe he has the Space Gem." Hela said more to Thor and Loki than to the others.

Loki eyes went back and forth between Hela and Thor. "Then he would have two. He possess the mind gem as well."

Thor let out long breath. Hela sat back in her chair staring at the table.

After an awkward silence Tony broke in. "Are you three going to tell us what these gems are?"

"There are 6 Infinity Gems that each possess a great power in the universe: time, mind, reality, soul, power, and space." Hela began to explain.

Thor added. "If you possess the gem, you can wield the power that is embodied in that gem."

"The 6 gems can be united by placing them in the Infinity Gauntlet. Whoever has the Gauntlet with all 6 gems will possess immense power and dominance over all the realms and can be unstoppable." Loki added.

"But you said that Thanos has two?" Steve questioned.

"He definitely possesses the mind gem. You have seen how that power can be used." Loki said flatly.

"If he had the space gem, it would make his travel to each of the realms effortless, along with his armies." Hela added.

"What about the other gems?" Natasha asked

"The gems have been scattered around the realms and it is not necessarily known where all the gems are." Hela said.

"What do you mean 'not necessarily known'?" Tony asked

"There is speculation as to where some of the gems are, but most of them are hidden or secured." Hela explained

"Asgard possess the power gem as well as the Gauntlet, itself. It is also kept in our weapons vault." Thor told the group.

After a few seconds of silence Hela spoke up. "I have the soul gem."

Loki and Thor looked at Hela, almost shocked. "How long have you had it, niece?" Thor asked.

"Possession of it fell to me when I became queen. It has been in Hel since the gems were scattered."

"A detail you have never mentioned previously." Loki said coolly.

"A detail that never needed to be mentioned, previously." Hela replied.

"Besides having these gems, what else do you know about Thanos?" Steve inquired.

"He is ruthless and many of his subordinates are loyal out of fear. If you fail him…" Loki trailed off. "If you fail him, he will make you long for something as sweet as pain."

"And we know that he has some sick obsession with death." Tony added.

"Yes. He will continue his slaughter in hopes that he pleases death with his offerings." Thor continued Tony line of thinking.

"Which is overrunning my realm with people who shouldn't be there yet." Hela jumped in. "I don't have dominion over everyone, so I don't know exactly all the places he has been to. I don't have dominion over Midgard so I wouldn't see when he starts here if we don't head him off first."

"What kind of power does he have?" Steve questioned.

"It's not fully known to me the extent of his power." Loki answered.

"But we know that he will be able to wield the power that of the gems he possess will have." Thor said.

"Are there set things that you can do with these gems?" Natasha inquired.

"I'm afraid not." Thor answered. "The holder of the gem can do vast things with its power and the power of each gem still is not fully understood. Many of those who possess them do not use them; they instead keep them safe and out of the reach of those who would use them for tyrannical means. Those that do use them often keep the nature of their use secret."

"Is the soul gem how you would have been able to hide Loki in your place?" Clint asked Hela.

Hela shook her head. "No. I possess that power without the gem. It is part of the power that comes from my position. I control who enters and leaves my realm and where they go once they are there. No one can remove someone from my realm without my consent….not even Odin."

"Wait…who leaves? You mean people can leave once they are dead. Like come back to life?" Tony jumped in.

"Sometimes." Hela answered. "There's a procedure or kind of ritual. There's pleading…and a price that has to be paid…and I have to be in a good mood. Well maybe not the last one…but it helps. Unless you're special and then I just let you go without going through all that." Hela winked at Loki. "I have my own power that I have naturally, I have the powers that come from being the Guardian of the Dead and then I can possess the powers given from the soul gem."

"So, do you have the same abilities as Loki?" Bruce asked.

"Hmmmm, I possess many of the same abilities, yes. Hela answered vaguely.

Steve decided to get back on topic. "So if Thanos were to use the space gem to get to Earth; would there still be a portal?"

Loki explained. "Yes, but the portal would not need to come from the sky. It could be a rip in any area."

"So we could have a ground level portal opening up?" Tony asked.

"Yes. Depending on the type of forces Thanos was using would determine what area he would want to open a portal in." Loki continued. "The Chitauri that I was using were skilled as a flying force with small pockets of ground forces, as you know. However, if Thanos was using an army that was more skilled as a ground force, he would open a portal on the ground instead of the sky."

"Any idea who he is using?" Natasha asked.

"I don't have any current knowledge in that aspect." Loki answered.

"You are being awfully cooperative, answering all of these questions." Tony assessed.

"Like I told your Director Fury, it benefits me greatly to see Thanos destroyed." Loki answered flatly.

"Any idea where he would open his portal?" Bruce questioned.

"I would imagine it would be close to where he sent his scouting party. He would probably start outside of where the last attack was in order to be able to mobilize." Loki answered.

"We need to develop an initial strategy for dealing with another invasion." Steve directed. "We'll work with the assumption that he will at least have some Chitauri with him since they were was the scouting party was."

The group began talking about initial strategies based on the first encounter with Chitauri. They talked over mobilization and the use of SHIELD forces as well as how they could combine their talents and work as a unified force to repel this attack. They strategized well into the evening.

"Okay, so I guess now, we keep an eye what Shield, Dr. Foster and Dr. Selvig pick up as far as energy spikes go that would indicate a portal opening. We need to be at the ready so we can move out when this happens. " Steve adjourned their meeting.

The group started to break apart. Loki eyes met with Hela's and with a tilt of his head indicated that he wanted her to follow him out to the balcony. She followed him out so they were by themselves.

"What can you do with the soul gem?" Loki said to her as soon as the door was closed.

"Not wasting any time getting to the point, father?" Hela sighed as she looked out over the city.

After a few moments she began to answer. "I didn't do anything with it for a while. I never really saw a need. But, eventually I figured that I better see what I could do with it, in case I needed to actually use it. So I began experimenting with it. I sought out advice and tried some things."

"From Hades." Loki threw in.

"Yes. We've been looking at how the gem affects beings from realms that I don't have dominion over."

"Is there a difference?" Loki asked.

"Not really." Hela looked over at her father briefly before turning her gaze back to the city's nighttime skyline. "It allows me to use some of my powers on them, those that I would only be able to use on those I have dominion over."

Loki gave a hum of acknowledgement.

"I haven't tried to use it for anything detrimental or destructive. I'm sure I could if I wanted to." Hela chuckled to herself. "Maybe I should try to steal Thanos's soul."

Loki turned and stared at Hela thoughtfully.

"I said that in jest." She said looking at him.

"But you probably could…" Loki trailed off in thought.

Hela thought for a moment and then nodded.

"Could you corrupt a soul and poison it as one could do to the mind with the mind gem?" Loki was still thinking as he spoke.

"I don't see why not." Hela said after thinking through Loki's reasoning. "The amount of influence the gem has can vary from being to being, though. It might not be as powerful on someone like Thanos compared to a being with minimal power."

"Even still, this could work to our advantage. It's a weapon we didn't know we had and it might help hasten Thanos's demise." Loki told her.

Hela hooked her arm through Loki she turned to go back inside. "Looks like we need to add some new aspects to our strategy."


End file.
